Published: 2023
Genre: Sports; Realistic Fiction, Basketball, Grief, Native American, Ojibwe, Contemporary
Trigger Warnings: racism; death/grief; language
Audience: Young Adult
Summary: This debut novel by Byron Graves tells the story of a young athlete determined to play like the hero his Ojibwe community needs him to be. These days, Tre Brun is happiest when he is playing basketball on the Red Lake Reservation high school team—even though he can’t help but be constantly gut-punched with memories of his big brother, Jaxon, who died in an accident. When Jaxon’s former teammates on the varsity team offer to take Tre under their wing, he sees this as his shot to represent his Ojibwe rez all the way to their first state championship. This is the first step toward his dream of playing in the NBA, no matter how much the odds are stacked against him. But stepping into his brother’s shoes as a star player means that Tre can’t mess up. Not on the court, not at school, and not with his new friend, gamer Khiana, who he is definitely not falling in love with. After decades of rez teams almost making it, Tre needs to take his team to state. Because if he can live up to Jaxon’s dreams, their story isn’t over yet.
Review: I rarely read books about sports, but I’m so glad I picked this one up! I enjoyed every page of the book where basketball is by no means the only focus. I found myself caring deeply about the outcome of each game, and I was unable to predict what would happen even during the tryout period. I appreciated that Tre’s plans were met with realistic road blocks and that he processed each of them in an emotional way that young people could learn from. Drinking comes up as well during the book and is handled wisely on the part of the author; Tre notices that drinking negatively affects his ability to focus and play the game, so he and his teammates vow to stay sober during the season. This was super refreshing–I’ve never read a book about teenagers choosing not to drink in such an authentic way.
Also in the book is a love-story-that-wasn’t. Tre falls for the new girl, Khianna, at school with whom he shares many interests. However, she opts not to get involved with him and then actually falls for Tre’s best friend. Tre is crushed and lashes out at both of them, later having to apologize and deal with the fallout of his words. While a romance would have felt more satisfying in a way, the situation in the book makes for meaningful and realistic discussions about unrequited love and unexpected connections. There are so many learning moments in this journey, and I think I will recommend it as a summer reading book for next year. There’s a lot to love about this book, and it’s got a whole lot of heart in it!
One moment that did give me pause came at the end during the final championship game. Tre injures his ankle with either a total break or a sprain. He is initially taken out of the game but persuades his coach to put him back in. I didn’t think this was necessary and probably wasn’t the best message to send to readers.
